Does the entire coop and run need to be covered and kept dry?

[sumyungchik]

I have about 7 small chickens, not fully grown, in a decent sized coop/run area. The coop is covered but the run is not. The run is enclosed in hardware cloth but when building it we thought the sun would be good for them and dry out the dirt after it rains. We let them out a few times a day, but lately it has been raining a lot and the run has gotten muddy and everything stinks pretty bad. I scrubbed out the coop and got most of the poop out but it still smells. I had cleaned the coop a few days ago. So, should we cover the run so it stays dry? Is the rain making it muddy and stinky? Help! We are also still working on bedding for the coop but they like to sleep in a corner in the run that is sort of covered. I just don't like that they have to be in the coop/run when it smells so bad.

 

[TalkALittle]

Odor and waste management practices depend so much on individual factors. The more we know about your setup, the better we can advise. What are the actual dimensions of your coop and run? What is the surface they are housed on? What are you currently using for litter material in the coop? How about in the run?

 

[sumyungchik]

This is our chicken house, they hardly go in the coop- I am not sure the exact dimensions, maybe the run is 4ft (l) x 4ft (w) x 5ft (h) and the coop is smaller... Except when it rains they mostly stay in the run unless its hot or rainy. We do not have any bedding in there yet it's just wooden floor. I wipe it down when it gets messy. The run has dirt floor and sometimes we throw some grass and leaves in there. I was planning on putting pine shavings in the coop. Sometimes I lay down paper towels but they throw them everywhere. The entire coop and run is in our backyard on what was once grass. This is our first time having chickens and we built this coop so we are still lost a little.

 

[Spartan22]

I have about 7 small chickens, not fully grown, in a decent sized coop/run area. The coop is covered but the run is not. The run is enclosed in hardware cloth but when building it we thought the sun would be good for them and dry out the dirt after it rains. We let them out a few times a day, but lately it has been raining a lot and the run has gotten muddy and everything stinks pretty bad. I scrubbed out the coop and got most of the poop out but it still smells. I had cleaned the coop a few days ago. So, should we cover the run so it stays dry? Is the rain making it muddy and stinky? Help! We are also still working on bedding for the coop but they like to sleep in a corner in the run that is sort of covered. I just don't like that they have to be in the coop/run when it smells so bad. 

Yep, it's been raining a lot alright my functioning run is 10x12 ( another 10x12 are grassy and open top). I've place 3" deep of play sand after they ate all the grass and half of it has pine shavings on top to keep them dry. I've installed corrugated clear vinyl roof on half of my run for shelter when it's raining but 2 wks ago, I decided to roofed it all since we have so much rain.
When it's sunny they still get lots of sunshine thru the roof and all 3 sides of the run. I use some Sweet PDZ in the run and also in the coop to control smell.
I also have play sand and pine shavings in the coop and it kept it dry and no smell at all.
Collecting droppings every morning like (less than 5 min tops) sand under the roost helped also minimize smell and poo tracking in their nests. I find this very effective since I started my chicken keeping last year w/ all the help of BYC infos.

 

[TalkALittle]

Well, I'm sorry to say that I don't think your problem is as much the rain as it is that you have too many chickens (and the resulting poop) in too small a space. I can't imagine keeping 7 birds in such a small run and not winding up with behavioral issues between them. By even the most minimum standards, that's only room for 4 adult birds. If the coop is even smaller than the run then it's also too small for all your birds. I'd rehome at least 3 if not 4 of your birds.

I would definitely cover your entire run. Your birds need all the room they can get and you don't want bad weather making them crowd into the coop. I'd put shavings in the coop. You're probably going to need to clean it every week. Once the run is covered I'd put a good 4-6 inches of sand in the run and scoop it like a cat litter box twice a day. Or put down a mix of leaves, shavings and grass clippings that you'll likely have to change out every week as well.

Unfortunately, your run size makes other methods of waste management like deep litter method impractical. You're just going to have to clean things out very frequently to stay on top of the poop.

 

[donrae]

I agree your space it too small and no matter what you do, you're going to have odor and flies. It's just too many animals pooping in too small a space.

With that small a run, it would be easy peasy to cover it, so go ahead and give them more dry space. You'll need to decide if you're going to expand the run and coop or get rid of some birds.

 

[RonC]

I hang a tarp with carabiners to form a ceiling in my run. Angle it or make an inverted vee shape (think pup tent) so the water will run off. Don't try laying it on top as rain and snow will accumulate making it weigh a ton. You could add a frame on top to lay the tarp over if height inside is an issue. I put it up in summer for added shade or in the spring during our rainy season. The occasional shower I don't worry about. I agree about the overcrowding. More space or less chickens.

 

[sumyungchik]

Okay thanks everyone, we have had a tropical storm here in Hawaii and luckily it is passed but it was really coming down. Today we deep cleaned the coop and run and took all the dirty dirt out and put pine shavings and natural litter in the coop. I also deoderized it before hand. Then, we put new dirt down and some mulch and I plan on making IMO's (indigenous micro organisms) to eat away at the soil/waster. But we are going to work on a bigger coop for them ASAP. Thank you